Swim Lessons; Towel Optional

Henry had his first swim lessons at the community pool this week.  I was just as nervous as he was.  I tried to prepare him ahead of time for going into the pool with an instructor and other children.  I told him that I would not be in the water with him.  He seemed fine with the plan until it was time to leave home.  Then he said "I don't want to go" about four hundred times.  I had to make a decision:  Force him to do something he felt was too scary or give in to his fear and protests.  We talked through it.  Luckily, I had allotted extra time to get ready so we didn't have to rush out the door.

By the time we arrived at the pool, Henry was quite calm.  We still had a few minutes before the lesson so he kept reading in the backseat of our rental car.

I really liked that there were two instructors for the four children in his group.  One instructor stayed with him as he began participating at his own pace.  Henry reluctantly entered the shallow water and watched as the other three students held hands and walked in a circle.  He continued watching from the sidelines for about ten minutes, then he joined the fun.

I think Henry liked the individual attention from the instructor; he kept interrupting her lesson to talk about himself.  Cute, but it makes me think he will benefit from a preschool class where he has to share the adult with many children.

Henry is in the pre-beginner class and well, so am I. I'm new to this park district lesson thing. There are so many activities and opportunities. I feel pressured to find Henry's niche before he misses the opportunity to develop essential skills. By this I mean that, in our community, beginning lessons for just about anything start at age 3. Once children reach age 6, there are no classes that teach the basics of soccer, swimming, gymastics, baseball, etc.  It's assumed that kids that age know how to play the sport and are ready for competitive activity. I don't want Henry to be left behind and yet (this is a big YET) I don't want him to feel pushed and overscheduled. How do I quickly but thoroughly introduce him to individual sports so that he gets enough exposure to choose his favorites?

And what about this guy? Sure he's content to sit on the sidelines now, but how long can I count on that?

There's a lot to think about regading future activities and lesson sign-ups.  But  for now I'm going to concentrate on remembering to bring a towel and to remove Henry's shoes before he enters the pool.

Swinging after Swimming